Saturday, July 10, 2010

ONE DAYONE DAYI will not judgeNor give heed to being judged.ONE DAYI will listen And respond where I used to react.With only love I willSay what I meanAnd mean what I sayHopefully without an attack.ONE DAYI will view all experiencesEven those negativeAs an opportunity to improve and learnThus turning it all into the positive.ONE DAYI will not worryNot to say I won't careI will have learnedThat worry gets me absolutely nowhere.ONE DAYI will have learned To take the spotlight off the rotten appleWhich is only in the minorityThe focus will be on the orchard in its entiretyAnd the beautiful crop that lies ahead of me.ONE DAYNo! DAY ONE.by: SAM

Rocking gently on white wickerWorry-free on the porch of my pretty blue bungalow,Facing north, toward Great Egg Harbor and Ocean City,With the Atlantic's roar in my right earAnd Ludlum Bay's gentle lap in my left,Memories of every sort course through me,A swirling nor'easter or a roiling hurricane.

I recall days long past in this magical place by the seaWeekends 100 miles from parents and professorsDeep bronze suntans, too soon to be regrettedPillow fights in ratty rented roomsSandwiches buttered up for muscled-up lifeguardsFrankie Avalon yet undiscoveredChubby Checker twistingLingo largely limited to "cool" "sharp" and "copacetic"Our style the very best of Main Line preppy.Today, reminding myself these are the good old days,I smile, because my kinfolk, each and every one,Have, over the weeks, dropped byFor a gin and tonic, a cold Schmidts, a warm Guinness,Crabcakes. Cheesesteaks. Tastykakes.Soft pretzels with mustard. Hoagies.A dip in the sea and a sit on the sandA stroll along the sun-baked boardwalkA walk to the pub, where Irish music speaks to our roots.

Quirky, but endlessly endearing, I loveThat the waitress calls me "hon"And the maitre d' calls me "sweetheart"In that unique, unlovely Philly accentKindled, according to local lore,By the confluence of the Delaware and Schuylkill RiversI am definitely homeWhere it still feels cool to be a hon and a sweetheart.by: Gigi